Charlotte, North Carolina (CNN) - He has one of the most recognizable names in American politics, but there's a lot you don't know about Albert Gore, Jr.

For instance, he was a Green Beret and master parachutist in the Army with 91 jumps under his belt and the rank of colonel. He has a fondness for cigars and pipes, lit or unlit. And in 1998, he retired from a 51-year career as a Methodist minister.FULL POST

West Windsor, Vermont (CNN) – Debate prep doesn't get more preppy than this.

Nestled high atop a tree-covered hillside overlooking Vermont's Green Mountains, Mitt Romney is preparing for his upcoming debates with President Obama in a sprawling mansion, assessed at $3.9 million, according to local officials.FULL POST

Charlotte, North Carolina (CNN) - For just a couple of hours on Wednesday morning, the center of gravity in Democratic politics was a steamy Marriott parking lot in New South suburbia, many miles from the security-enclosed commotion of the Democratic National Convention in uptown Charlotte.

New York (CNNMoney) - The stakes are high and the forecast is gloomy, ahead of the August jobs report scheduled to be released Friday by the Labor Department.

A month ago, that report showed businesses added 163,000 jobs in July. Job gains at that level were the strongest in five months, but still were not robust enough to keep up with population growth. The unemployment rate ticked up to 8.3%.

Charlotte, North Carolina (CNN) - After days of bad weather, President Barack Obama's re-election campaign and Democratic National Convention organizers have decided to change the venue of the president's acceptance speech Thursday in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Instead of holding the final night at the Bank of America stadium as planned, the event will move indoors to the Time Warner Cable arena, where the first two days of the convention have taken place.FULL POST

(CNN) – A poll released Wednesday showed no boost in New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's approval rating following his keynote address at last week's Republican National Convention.

The survey from Quinnipiac University, taken August 27-September 2, indicated that 52% of adults in New Jersey approve of the job Christie is doing as governor. That's statistically unchanged from the 54% who approved of Christie in a July 17 survey. The outspoken New Jersey governor addressed delegates in Tampa last Tuesday.FULL POST

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney) – Wall Street is on track to spend more on this election than it ever has during a campaign season.

With two months to go before Nov. 6, Wall Street firms have so far spent $164 million on campaigns and donations to political groups designed to influence the elections, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. That puts the industry on pace to surpass the spending record of $170 million that it set during the 2008 race.

(CNN) – Changes between the 2008 version of the Democratic Party platform and the document offered this week are both “peculiar” and “tragic,” Rep. Paul Ryan, the Republican vice presidential nominee, said on Wednesday.

The Democrats' official platform, released late Monday, omits a clause from the party's 2008 document proclaiming Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a subject of intense diplomatic scrutiny that Obama's Republican challenger Mitt Romney has put at the center of his position on the Jewish state.FULL POST

(CNN) – The conservative super PAC Crossroads GPS said Wednesday it would spend upwards of $6 million to air a television spot knocking President Barack Obama’s record on the economy, saying his policies are the opposite of his campaign’s ‘forward’ motto.

The new ad, titled “Forward?” will air in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia, a spokesman for Crossroads said, with $6.6 million going toward the ad buy.FULL POST

CNN's GUT CHECK | for August 24, 2012 | 7 a.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

Editor's Note: This is a special morning edition of CNN's Political Gut Check which will come out twice a day for the duration of the political conventions. For early access to Gut Check, download the CNN/Time Floor Pass app.

DEVELOPING: In North Carolina, student insurance costs rise under Obamacare... President Obama's health care reform law, which expands preventative care and lets young people remain on their parents' health insurance plans well into their 20s, is a central part of his election year pitch to college students. … But as the president fights to keep the conservative-leaning state in his column this November, education officials here are complicating his campaign message by citing "Obamacare" as a reason for the rising cost of student health insurance plans on campuses from Asheville to Wilmington. – Peter Hamby

CNN FACT CHECK: About those 4.5 million jobs..."Despite incredible odds and united Republican opposition, our president took action, and now we've seen 4.5 million new jobs," San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, the party's keynote speaker, said. … The figure of 4.5 million jobs is accurate if you look at the most favorable period and category for the administration. But overall, there are still fewer people working now than when Obama took office at the height of the recession.